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By R Lovel, P Fung, J Manuel, M OÆCo

The iron blast furnace is the most widely used and efficient producer of liquid iron. The integrated steel works is however under environmental pressure largely due to emissions from sintering and coking. The combustion of coke breeze during sintering contributes to greenhouse gases (eg carbon dioxide) and is the source of much of the emissions of SOx and NOx. Coke breeze, the fines produced during coking of coal, is also suffering supply issues as coke demand increases while coking capacity is constrained by environmental concerns.CSIRO Minerals has been investigating the use of wood biomass/char as a substitute for coke during sintering. Wood biomass, or char produced from it, is an attractive carbon source as carbon dioxide can be sequestered into growing biomass prior to combustion. It has great potential to reduce the emissions from integrated steelworks and improve their environmental acceptability. Harvested biomass/char is also a renewable and sustainable resource. Samples of pine wood flour, sawdust and red gum wood char were characterised and used in small-scale granulation and sintering tests. Red gum char granulated as well as coke and could be used to make acceptable sinter. Large-scale sinter pot test were conducted with char to produce sufficient sinter for ISO quality tests and calculate sintering performance parameters. Results showed that coke could be completely substituted by red gum char during sintering without loss of quality and with actual improvements in sintering performance. Furthermore, gas analyses made during sintering showed that there were significant reductions in SOx and NOx when char was substituted for coke. It is anticipated that the results reported here, although preliminary, will stimulate an increased effort into further research on the use of char in iron ore sintering.

Jan 1, 2004

Now that Japan has achieved a remarkable high growth and joined the ranks of economic powers, she is required to take a stance proper to her new position toward international co- operation among Western advanced countries, economic/technical aids to Southeast Asian and Pacific LDCs, and others. As a field subject to such international cooperation programs, the development/use of coal resources has been winning increasing attention in recent years. Coal is positioned as one of promising alternative energies. With Southeast Asia plus Japan and the EEC serving as the two nucleus polar regions, total coal demand in the free world is projected to jump 37% in the year 2000 from the present level and steaming coal imports in the world, primarily destined for power generation, almost double the 1983 level. Such being the situations, Japan's tech- nologies related to coal resource development, if successfully introduced into coal-producing countries to help them boost their production, can directly lead to international cooperation that Japan is now required to fulfill. At home, however, the Japanese coal industry has been just on the wane due to various press- ing problems, such as wider differentials between overseas and domestic coal and deeper/ remorter mining. The industry was named atop in a list of the industries requiring restruct- uring at a meeting of the Economic Structure Study Committee held prior to the decision- making of the 8th coal policy, which slashed coal production planned for the last fiscal year of its life to some 10 million tons, a drop of as much as 50% from nominal output planned in the 7th policy. Under such circumstances at home and abroad, a pioneer study has been under way since fiscal 1984 as part of Japan's energy cooperation in the Pacific. The study is based on the Pacific coal flow concept hammered out by the Agency of Natural Resources and Energy of the MITI.

Jan 1, 1987

By Tuite M. J, Woolcock L. J

The Awak Mas gold project is located in the Province of South Sulawesi, Republic of Indonesia. It is situated 300 km by road north of the provincial capital of Ujung Pandang. The capital is readily accessible by air from Australia via Denpasar on Bali or the Indonesian capital, Jakarta (Figure 1). Elevations at Awak Mas range from 850 to 1400 metres above sea level in reasonably rugged terrain. The area is covered by primary and secondary (regrowth) rain forest. The region is subject to an equatorial-type tropical climate. The annual rainfall is a high 3000 mm most of which falls in the rainy season between March and June. In the lower valleys rice, cloves and chocolate crops are cultivated. Title to the project area is secured by a Contract of Work (COW) issued to PT Masmindo Eka Sakti (MES) on 23 October 1987 by the Government of Indonesia. MES was controlled at the time by New Hope Industries group of Brisbane. After New Hope had completed initial reconnaissance exploration of the area, Battle Mountain Gold Company (BMGC) farmed-in in 1991 and earned a 60 per cent beneficial interest in MES.

Jan 1, 1996

By Robins R. G

The dissolution of metallic copper powder in aqueous solutions of cupric sulphate under the influence of ethylene gas was investigated. The dissolution reaction stoichiometry obtained was: Cue+(aq) + Cu(s) + 2C2H4(g) = 2(CuC2H4)+(aq) The rate of formation of the copper (I)-ethylene complex in the above reaction was studied in a laboratory autoclave and the effect pH, temperature, ethylene partial pressure and initial concentration on the dissolution rate was measured experimentally and expressed theoretically in terms of several simple conceptual kinetic models. The results led to the selection of optimum conditions for the reaction and the suggestion of an "ion-molecule reaction" mechanism to explain the very low activation energies for the reaction system. The area of application of this reaction lies in the direction of refining impure copper such as cement copper. Several experiments were performed in which an acidified solution of cupric sulphate under ethylene pressure was used to dissolve copper from the cement copper powder in the form of the copper (I)-ethylene complex, followed by the release of gas pressure to disproportionate the complex and precipitate a purer metallic copper.

Jan 1, 1987

By Anderson J. M, Gillies A. D S, Jones N

There are a number of current theories in relation to methane migration and emission into workings following underground coal mining activity and some controversies do exist. Mining causes changes in the stress regimes in surrounding strata and results in fracturing. Permeability increases and methane flows into workings under a pressure gradient. The effects of stress on permeability depend on the physical properties of the coal and surrounding strata. Methane emission also depends on the original methane content and the proportion which will be liberated. There are several methods for determining in situ methane content and desorption characteristics of coal samples and several methane prediction methods but clearly more research is necessary to achieve an adequate predictive model.

Jan 1, 1992

Don Hausen was a pioneer in the field of quantitative mineralogy. Methodology that he developed at Newmont almost 40 years ago is still employed today, only the technology has advanced. Petrographic methods were stressed with an emphasis on alteration, mineralisation and paragenesis. Methodologies employed by Don on the Carlin deposit were applied to developing the Carlin Trend by helping to work out lithology and structure, which ultimately led to the discovery of deep high-grade deposits. Quantitative methods used by Don on San Manuel, Copper Creek and Superior, Arizona were applied to the development of the Batu Hijau Deposit in Indonesia. Advancements in technology since DonÆs time have made the mineralogist much more efficient. Manual measurement of peak heights off of strip charts for semiquantitative XRD has been replaced by software that does Rietveld refinement and whole pattern fitting. Hand contouring of XRD data has been replaced by digitised data incorporated into geologic models. Optical point counting, which would take a dayÆs work to process 1000 points, has been replaced by automated SEM methods where 20 000 points are possible in an hour. The use of the optical microscope remains relatively unchanged, and still remains as Don emphasised the æeyesÆ of mineral exploration. However, the information can be relayed much more quickly with digital image capture and electronic data transfer. Don insisted on becoming involved in projects at the grassroots level and supporting the project through mine closure. This made the mineralogist a liaison between exploration geologists, mine geologists, metallurgists and mine engineers. The methodology that Don helped develop continues to provide invaluable support to Newmont geologists and metallurgists worldwide today.

Jan 1, 2008

Potential hlghwaJl mining reserves in Australia are large, but geotechnical and operating conditions are quite different from those where highwall mining has evolved in the USA. In order to achieve safe and effective resource recovery, equipment and procedures should be developed to penetrate 250 m in the Australian mining environment. This paper identifies key auributes to be incorporated in such machinery and methodology. These suggestions are intended to promote discussion on innovations to satisfy Australian requirements for highly productive, safe and environmentally acceptable techniques.

Jan 1, 1993

Utah's Blackwater mine began operations in 1967. The four CQCA mines controlled by Utah followed over the period 1971 to 1979. Project feasibility studies for all these were based on open cut mining to overburden depths of 60 metres, with typical project lives of 12 to 16 years, depending on reserves Further studies, initiated after the mines had started, showed that continuation of open cut mining beyond the 60 metre highwall was viable. In 1973, the Deep Stripping Project (DSP) was launched to define the scope for stripping deeper, to determine what the additional equipment needs might be, and to pu forward proposals for a full scale trial system. The project commenced at grass roots with a literature survey, proceeded through a sequence of equipment evaluation, specification, design and manufacture to the commissioning of the Goonyella BWE system. Studies are continuing to assess the future deep stripping requirements for all Utah's Bowen Basin mines.

Jan 1, 1983

By Fabjanczyk M. W

Artificial ground support has developed into a refined science over the past 20 years. From reactive support systems such as timber props and steel supports, to active systems such as roof bolts and cable anchors, ground support technology has now developed efficient systems that work well in many instances. However this paper demonstrates that there is still a long way to go to develop optimum ground support systems. Some conventional rock bolts and cable anchors emphasise their tensile capacity only, without considering other factors such as their shear strength or shear modulus, or if the support member can transfer all of its support capacity to the surrounding rock. Examples are given of the use of ground anchors with high tensile and shear capacity in underground coal mining as well as examples of slope failures in open pits where the cable bolts have remained intact because they have been unable to transfer their full capacity to the surrounding weak rock mass. For underground coal mines, speed of installation is also of primary concern, but it must also have high tensile and shear capacity both in terms of strength and stiffness. Ground support systems of the future must therefore address these problems. An innovative new rock bolt is discussed which goes some way towards solving these problems. This new rock bolt is screwed into the rock and thus has a direct mechanical interlock with the rock. Initial field results show that it has an extremely high anchor capacity and can be fully installed in approximately 30 seconds. It has considerable capacity to improve the productivity of the coal mining industry.

Jan 1, 1992

By C Philander

The West Coast of South Africa is well known for its placer gem quality diamond deposits and also associated with these hosts of Cenozoic unconsolidated marine and aeolian sand and gravel are significant concentrations of heavy minerals. Exploration for economic concentrations of zircon, ilmenite and rutile along the coast started in the mid-1980s. This resulted in the discovery of an inferred 1.6 billion tonne resource with a grade of ten per cent total heavy minerals (THM), which developed into the Namakwa Sands Mine, a world-class producer of heavy minerals. Several other resources, including satellite deposits proximal and distal to the mine area, extensive diamond mine dumps and present day beach placers, demonstrate the vast heavy mineral potential along the West Coast. The favourable gangue to economic mineral ratio, a higher zircon content compared to other similar deposits, relatively lower U+TH content of zircon, low slimes content and effectively pristine low chromium-manganese ilmenite of these deposits, render them attractive exploration targets. Negative factors that will affect conventional mineral beneficiation and liberation include secondary mineral coatings and the regional coastal development of several layers of superimposed duricrust. The economically attractive heavy mineral assemblage along the West Coast is the result of erosion of the proximal, gneissic Namaqualand Metamorphic Province and mature Table Mountain Group sandstone, concentration by marine and aeolian processes and preservation under arid climatological conditions over a period of more than 100 Ma.

Jan 1, 2008

The sole reason for a mine to exist is to extract the finite mineral resource. Accurate grade control is critical to the economics of any mine. If grade control is not optimised, then no matter how good the downstream processes are, the full potential of the operation will not be realised. The detailed implementation of grade control varies but typically consists of sampling and assaying to determine the location of the ore zones. A lot of time, money and effort are spent defining the location of the ore as accurately as possible à but then it is blown up! The effect that blasting has on grade control is rarely adequately accounted for when the rock is excavated because there has never been an accurate and practical method for measuring blast movement. This paper draws on over six years of research into measuring and understanding blast movement, which started at the Julius Kruttschnitt Mineral Research Centre (JKMRC) of the University of Queensland. The research has made a unique contribution to open pit blasting by helping to develop a practical tool for measuring blast movement, which was then used to improve the understanding of three-dimensional blast movement dynamics. However, these achievements would be of largely academic interest without taking the final step of using this technology and knowledge to account for blast movement by translating the ore polygons in response to the measured movement vectors. This paper provides an overview of blast movement but focuses on one site where blast movement was measured during three separate periods, with significantly different orientation of the mineralisation on each occasion. The theoretical ore loss varied from nine per cent to 24 per cent. The differences are primarily due to the orientation of the ore polygons relative to the direction of movement. The optimum grade control solution is a combination of accurately accounting for blast movement and designing appropriate blasts.

Jan 1, 2009

Analysis of different environmental scenarios and to represent, spatially, of impacted areas is possible by the use of geoprocessing techniques, specifically Systems of Geographical Information (SIG). Through these systems it is possible to create dynamic mathematical models, constituting of a georeferenced digital database and employing the integrated data originated from several sources. In this context, the general goal of this paper is to apply this tool in an environmental analysis of a specific karstic area impacted by mining activities. In order to preserve a limestone site, internationally recognised by its archaeological features, including caverns, lakes and evidences of prehistoric ages, the Brazilian government has created the Lagoa Santa Environment Protection Area. This place is located in the proximity of the Belo Horizonte international airport. In the past two decades exploitations of dimension stones have increased in this area. These exploitations have been done without a mine plan promoting several environmental impacts. The objective of this paper is to analyse these activities using SIG as a basic tool to locate the main mining related impacts and propose mitigation measures including waste and tailings disposal and reshaping of the landscape and introducing a drainage system for the considered zone.

Dec 6, 2010

By Woodcock JT

This paper reviews the chemistry of flotation pulps with the aim of gaining a better understanding of the effect of chemical environment in flotation and ap- plying the knowledge to improving the con- trol of reagent additions. Theories of flotation are considered briefly, but they are only of limited help in specifying an appropriate chemical environment and in establishing control techniques. The chemical nature of flotation pulps is reviewed. Four distinct phases are present - solids, an aqueous liquor con- taining many dissolved reactive sub- stances, organic liquids, and gases. All of these vary in many ways and interact with each other. It has now been estab- lished that there are many previously- unsuspected materials present in plant pulps that can or might affect flotation. Concentration profiles of selected para- meters in operating plants are given to show some typical changes that occur. Recent advances in collector chemistry, especially that of xanthate and related species, are reviewed. Modes of decompo- sition and/or formation in pulps of xan- thate, dixanthogen, perxanthate, xanthyl thiosulphate, and monothiocarbonate are reviewed, and their W absorption spectra are compared. Some relevant information on dithiophosphates, mercaptobenzothia- zole, and thionocarbamate is summarized, and some speculative comments are made about reactions of these collectors.

Jan 1, 1984

By Fallins J

THE John Darling Colliery, owned by The Broken Hill Proprietary Company Limited, is situated 12 miles south of Neweastle, NSW and about 1 mile from the ocean. The area of the holding is approximately 10,000 acres, about half of which underlies the Pacific Ocean. The area was proved to be coal bearing by diamond drill boring: this method not only proved the coal to exist, but gave the depths from which could be calculated. It also proved the existence or otherwise of heavy faulting, which is a very important factor in the design of the underground lay-out of a mine. The location of shafts had to be carefuIly studied, and, before final selection, the following salient points had to be considered:Railway communications.Flood waters.Boiler feed water.Surface buildings.Probability of coal washing.Underground haulage arrangements.Lengths of roadways from a ventilating viewpoint.Before the shaft sites were finally selected, an underground design was prepared to determine the direction of the main drives in relation to the boundaries of the holding, and the of the coal seam: the latter, being an important factor in this particular locality, was ascertained by a geological survey of rock outcrops in the neighbourhood. Size of shafts was the next subject for consideration. This was determined by output, number of seams to be worked, amount of ventilation required, and, on...

Jan 1, 1930

By Durucan S

Uncertainty due to spatial and temporal variability of different pollutants found in soil, water and air is an important issue in the modelling of environmental impacts. Recognition of spatial environmental patterns is relatively straightforward to achieve by applying most of the well-known artificial neural networks or adopting a stochastic approach. However, it is the temporal component of the environmental variables that makes modelling of the environmental pollutants particularly complicated and challenging. This paper presents the results of a case study investigating the artificial neural network performance when modelling the spatio-temporal behaviour of environmental pollutants. The test case involved the modelling and prediction of the distribution of water quality indicators along a river from the point of discharge of treated mine effluents. The behaviour of river water quality indicators is rather complex and shows a lot of fluctuations due to a number of hydrochemical, hydrobiological and hydrodynamic factors. Results obtained in this study indicate that artificial neural networks provide a very powerful and robust method for simultaneous modelling of spatio-temporal behaviour of environmental pollutants.

Jan 1, 1995

The geology and mineral deposits of the West Pilbara Goldfield are described and comparison is made with the Pilbara Goldfield,, In the West Pilbai'a Goldfield two adjacent environments are represented by a predominantly clastic succession and a predominantly volcanic succession. These two successions are lateral equivalents and lithologically they are similar to the classical successions at Warrdiwdbna and Mosquito Creek. How- ever, no evidence of a significant erosional break has been found. It is suggested that the Archaean rocks of: the Pilbara Block represent a single geosynclinal cycle, which culminated in orogenesis, within which-local disconformities have been developed in various places: and that the sub-Mosquito; Creek unconformity at Eastern Creek may be the most widespread of these disconformities, Widespread evidence of'preconsolidation movement, aid the intrusion of igneous rock into. unconsolidated sediment, suggest that tectonism and igneous activity began at a very early stage, This was localised along lines of fracture in an unidentified basement.,.Moveme.nt was primarily vertical and persisted into the older Proterozoic, The sediments were enriched in metal by vulcanicity, chemical sedimentation, and possibly detrit`1' contribution. Diagenesis and metamorphism caused the remobòliyation of the metallic constituents of igneous and sedimentary, rocks which were then localised-in loci of dislocation-formed both before and after consolidation.,.. . . , . .

Jan 1, 1964

By Kim YC

An alternative development drilling strategy to the one currently in use at an open pit mine was investigated using geostatistics for a portion of the pit. The massive orebody, the 3-D nature of the problem, and the location of ultimate pit limit in the study area all created some unique problems in devising the development drilling strategy. Rather than using confidence interval of the global reserve estimate as the main criterion for development drilling, the confidence interval of short and medium range mine planning blocks was used as the objective. Based on somewhat arbitrarily selected level of confidence, the results from the study showed that a total of 50 diamond drillholes (DDHs) rather than the planned 62 DDHs is sufficient in the study area, if the selected confidence levels are acceptable to the management. The paper also emphasizes the importance of particular objectives being used in development drilling and how they influence the "optimal" placement of the development drillholes.

Jan 1, 1986

Wetherstones gold deposit is located just east of the township of Lawrence, in the Otago District of the South Island, New Zealand. The paper will describe aspects of the mining and exploration history of the Wetherstones gold field, current knowledge of the geology of the deposit, and speculate on possible outcomes of exploration in the modern era.   As at the famed Gabriels Gully situated nearby, most of the Wetherstones gold is/was contained in, or recycled into modern drainages from, the Blue Spur Conglomerate (æBSCÆ). The BSC is the basal member of a wedge of auriferous non-marine sediments of latest Cretaceous age which are tilted against the Tuapeka Fault Zone, a structure of regional dimensions. In particular mineralisation of elevated grade (which cannot yet be reliably estimated) appears to be concentrated in an elongate basement depression (ægutterÆ) of width around 100 m, variable thickness to a few metres, and axial length in excess of 500 m. The gutter plunges from the base of alluvial mining (where it has been partly exploited by underground methods) to depths of more than 100 m, beyond which it remains open and untested.   The prospects for a revival of mining at Wetherstones depend upon confirmation of what is here inferred to exist, and the discovery of additional gold. The economic prospects of the project however are enhanced by what is known or indicated of the geographic location, and anticipated geologic, mining and metallurgical characteristics of the mineralisation, and consequent anticipated environmental management issues.   The recognition of gold contained in pyrite in the BSC represents an upside to project economics which has never previously been evaluated. The Wetherstones Basin covers more than five square kilometres in areal extent. There is no modern exploration record of the majority of this area, leaving open the prospect of the discovery of additional gutters, and primary mineralisation in the underlying schist.   Australasia Gold Ltd has embarked on a program to reassess the potential resources of the Wetherstones gold mineralisation, and to evaluate the feasibility of mining.

Jan 1, 2004

By C V. Putnis, T Geisler, A Putnis

In nature, ilmenite (FeTiO3) undergoes weathering through oxidation and removal of Fe to form an apparently continuous series of compositions from ilmenite to pseudorutile (ideally Fe2Ti3O9), and with further weathering, to leucoxene. To determine the mechanism of acid-leaching of ilmenite to ultimately form rutile, we have carried out an experimental study of ilmenite alteration in autoclaves at 150¦C in HCl solutions. Resulting products were studied by X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, electron microprobe and Raman spectroscopy. In some experiments the solution was initially enriched in 18O and the distribution of the isotope in the alteration products mapped from the peak shift in the Raman spectra. The results indicate that the alteration may proceed in two stages, each with a sharp interface between the parent phase and the product. The alteration begins at the original ilmenite crystal surface and along cracks through which the fluid can migrate. The first alteration product is pseudorutile û no phases intermediate between ilmenite and pseudorutile were detected. The textural relationship between ilmenite and pseudorutile suggests a coupled dissolution-reprecipitation mechanism rather than a solid state continuous oxidation and Fe diffusion mechanism. The second stage involves a further dissolution-reprecipitation step to form rutile. Raman spectroscopy shows that the 18O is incorporated in the rutile during the recrystallisation. Throughout the alteration process the original morphology of the ilmenite is preserved although the product is highly porous. The rutile inherits crystallographic information from the parent ilmenite, resulting in a triply-twinned rutile microstructure.

Jan 1, 2008

By Weyer J

Many existing computer planning programs for the mining industry focus either on big mining enterprises with a high production rate or on smaller operations for high value minerals. Big mining enterprises, like the hardcoal company `Ruhrkohle AG' in Germany have their own R&D departments which develop powerful computer programs for planning purposes, partly in co-operation with mining universities. However, there is a remarkable number of small- scale mining operations which are either not able to buy expensive hard- and software or don't have the skills for the operation of extensive software programs. Partly there is also a trend in using rule of thumb calculations rather than computer programs which need a lot of - partly unavailable - data. For this reason a computer program was developed which does not need expensive hardware and software and which can help the planning engineer in the selection of a limited number of possibilities. Until this time the planning engineer established two or three different cases and calculated the results with a pocket calculator. This could last some hours or even some days. Now he or she can use the computer program with a normal PC to compare the cases. All activities are menu-driven. The basis for all, calculations are fixed and variable costs as well as average performance for special activities. The paper gives an example for a possible planning situation in fluorspar mining (originally this program was developed for the fluorspar enterprise Lengenfeld in Germany). It shows the initial situation, the main structure of the program, the input logic and the results. Benefits, limits and possible extensions of the program are discussed.

Jan 1, 1995